Episode 195: Health is Everything with Jessica Dillon, SLP & Integrative Health Coach

Hi and welcome to episode 195 of the Untethered Podcast. Jessica Dillon is joining us today and Jesse is an integrative speech and language pathologist and certified health coach residing in West Michigan. She works part time as a private practice SLP where she incorporates the foundations of health and holistic living into her sessions. Jesse also blends her myofunctional and breathing knowledge into her work as a virtual health coach where she serves clients all over the United States. She has a passion for root cause healing and she believes wholeheartedly that the body can improve and or heal regardless of diagnoses. Quick Disclaimer all information, content and material of this podcast are the opinions of the speakers and is for the informational purpose only and not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis and or medical treatment of a qualified healthcare provider. Welcome to the Untethered Podcast. I am your host, Hallie Balkan. I'm a certified orofacial myologist, feeding specialist and mentor. This podcast is all about getting your questions answered and collaborating with colleagues to bring you the most up to date and information in the orofacial myofunctional therapy, tethered oral tissue and airway space. I challenge you to keep an open mind and join my mission to get this information out to the masses. Let's get started. Jessie, welcome to the podcast.

Hello. Thank you so much for having me. I'm very excited to be here today.

I'm excited to have you. So let's just jump right on into a little bit about you. They heard a little bit about your bio, but you know, from one speech language pathologist to another in this low toxic living space, how did you get into, you know, or I guess what was the transition between like being a speech language pathologist and a health coach?

You know, I think I got into this wellness or holistic space like most of us do. Either it's a personal story or your children are sick. And for me, I got sick around 2016. Severe stomach digestive issues that could not be resolved by my primary care doctor or the hospitals or the specialists that I saw. And I just, I needed answers because I wasn't functioning and I was. My first job as a speech pathologist, you know, you're so, you're so like excited in your first job and you want to do so well. And I was just sick and I, I needed answers and so I finally switched gears to functional medicine and I linked up with a do who started talking to me a little bit about root cause and I could have Gone to an appointment where we were two people speaking different languages. Because I had never heard any of this stuff in my life. Yeah, I probably really could have used someone to coach me along the way at that point in time because I ate only the standard American diet. I lived a high stress, fast paced life and I didn't take care of the emotional aspects of my life. I just pushed all that stuff under the rug and it caught up with me and I was very sick. So when I started healing quickly with the protocol, with my functional medicine doctor and realizing, doesn't everybody eat this way? All of my friends, my family, the kids that I serve, I was working in a school at the time. I was concerned because I'm like, are we all going to end up like this if we don't start talking about these things? And sure enough, I started going down the rabbit hole because once you turn on that holistic switch, it's hard to step away from it. And the passion just kept growing and growing. And you know, I can remember wanting to, to create like language lessons around like fruits and vegetables, just like trying to talk to my kids because they just, my kids didn't even know the difference between fruits and vegetables. And I was like, man, we've got.

A long ways to go.

But I wanted to sprinkle wellness into my job as a speech pathologist. And, and then it wasn't enough. And then I wanted to go back to school to become an integrative health coach because I wanted there to be something else in my title or something else to make people understand why I'm talking about this stuff. Because they're like, why does this speech pathologist keep talking about weird stuff like diet and gluten free, casein free, like what, where is she even getting this from? So I became a little self conscious, I could say, with just that title alone. And that's kind of what pushed me into this space. And then, you know, fast forward six, seven years, still can't turn off that switch and keep wanting to learn more.

It's so interesting. So I similarly, like early on, you know, I worked in the schools and at that point I also was just like, I need to do something for my own health. And so I was doing like beach body workouts and drinking like shakes. But I realized that I was paying more attention to like the foods I was eating and I was eating like a higher calorie diet because of the intense workouts I was doing. But I was like, there's a good mixture of vegetables and fruits and like, you Know, I was eating dairy and gluten still at the time, which I eat dairy right now, but I don't eat gluten. And it was just, it was a very different time, right? And then I started working with all these kids and I've got kids who have all different kinds of diagnoses and really fell in love with working with kids on the spectrum because I felt like they were just, I was so intrigued by them and I was like, how can I get down on their level and communicate with them? And so I kind of fell into like passionately like working with these kids and then started to notice trends around their feeding. And I was doing some feeding therapy already, but noticed like what they would eat, the colors of the food that they ate. And then I would notice they'd have issues with their bowel movements. And you know, and sometimes we'd have entire speech sessions where they were so uncomfortable because they were constipated or they were withholding or they really had no control over their bowel movements that they, it just, it literally just disrupted the entire session. And I was like, these kids don't feel well. Like, if they don't feel well, why are we not look like, why are we not asking other questions like, why do they not want to eat foods that are not yellow, brown and beige in color? Why do they not. I mean, obviously these are their safe foods, but why? Right? And so that kind of is where actually like I got thrown even further into the feeding space and then of.

Course had my own kids, which threw.

Me into the airway tots myo space and realized I have all those issues too high, you know, neurodivergent adult. And so it's, you know, I think I've slowly also fallen into like low tox living where I didn't get it until I think closer to even maybe right around the time that I was getting like we were planning on getting pregnant, having our first baby, and I was like, well, I'm going to eat organic in this pregnancy because I just feel like I should. I don't know why. I just feel like more information was starting to like become available. Not that it wasn't out there, just was not. It's not commonly discussed and it's just not, you know, it, it wasn't what I knew on a day to day basis. Like, I understood, okay, we eat protein, we eat veggies, we eat fruits, right? I understood like the food pyramid. But then I was just like, something is telling me like, I need to eat, I need to eat organic during my pregnancy because I'm growing another being. And I, you know, don't like all these conversations surrounding toxins, even on our produce. And so that was like my, my initial introduction, I think, to like low tox living. And it's funny too, because somewhere along that line I looked into becoming like an integrative health coach and doing into a whole bunch of different things and I was just like, no, no, like I, this is too much right now. I just can't do all this. That was like way before kids and, and I actually quit being an SLP for like eight months because I had done so while I became a beachbody coach. I replaced my school income.

Yeah, I don't know. I've talked about this.

Yeah, I was like looking at this and I'm like, these shakes, like, I feel like these shakes should be organic or I feel like they shouldn't have this type of protein or I feel like I was cutting like soy out. And it was really hard to find something that didn't have soy in it because I was reactive to like soy based on testing that I had done. And anywho, like, I'm like mixing up like a whole like 8, 10 year journey here. But yeah, it's just, it's so fascinating how we fall into this. And it may have been between kids that I did the leap in MRT testing to find out like, my food sensitivities and like what other things I was reactive to. And that was like a switch just like totally flipped for me at that point because when I cut out foods that I thought I was supposed to be eating and started eating foods that I thought were like, quote unquote, like not great for your body, like a white potato versus a sweet potato or it was telling me to eat like tuna and cucumber and I'm normally eating, you know, this other fish and, and tomatoes or whatever, it was like my brain thought like, oh, these foods aren't as healthy as those foods, so let's focus there. But actually they were making my body like totally inflamed and I didn't feel good. And all of a sudden inflammation in like a week was like, boom, gone. It was very fascinating. I've since been able to like reintroduce these foods on like the whole program they had attached to it. It's like not a very long term thing, but you can like add things back in like one at a time so you know what you're reactive to. And I'm like, huh? This is like a Reverse elimination diet. And it's like, why don't, why aren't more people talking about this secret?

I love that you've done all this stuff, Hallie. That's. Yeah, that's wonderful.

And I think like people don't really have any idea because it's not the stuff I typically talk about on the podcast. Like they hear me talk about airway and our tongue tie journey and all of that, but I'm like, these are truly the things I think that, that trickle down effect that even led me to be so passionate about airway when I learned like how much is conn to mouth breathing and you know, not and having a deviated septum and all these other issues. So yeah, yeah. So do you work with a lot of like pediatrics? Do you working with like adults? Do you do both? Like, what does that look like for you?

You know, it's, it's really split right now. I feel like it's all over the map. In private practice as a speech pathologist, I do mostly pediatrics with adults every now and then for more myo stuff. And then as a health coach, I do babies all the way up to had somebody in their 80s before. So you know that just like a whole, whole range too. We can all use that support. But, but yeah, really, you know, it's, it's like I talk about one or the other jobs, but they're just really so intertwined. And I find that the more and more I, I learn about either of these jobs, you know, I've really taken an interest more in feeding and mild the past couple of years and health. I've taken more interest in breathing and environmental toxins and things like that. And really so much of them connect. So even when I'm in like a specific speech type of training or I'm in a specific health training, I'm like, oh my goodness. I can see how they lend each other in both ways. And that's what I like about it is I think we're just, everything is so connected. So when we start working and looking at ourselves as this, you know, when we look at ourselves as not just one individual organ, you know, you're having an airway issue. So there can only be something related to the mouth. Maybe it's something related to the gut. Maybe, you know, maybe like you, maybe you have some really significant food sensitivities that are affecting you there. These body parts, although they're, they seem separate, they're all connected. So when we really look at ourselves like that, I think we can Make a whole lot more progress than if we just want to focus on just individual areas of the body.

Yeah, No, I love that. And that's, like, a constant theme on here, is, like, getting down to the root cause. And obviously, like, I talk a lot about that with tongue ties and, you know, eating and myo and airway and everything. But there are things I've done with my kids that are truly, you know, just things that people probably like, you did what? You know, like, I do early expansion, which is. I've talked about plenty. But, like, we use homeopathy, like, after my daughter, who has had croup chronically since infancy, who's now four and a half, which will be five in February, She. She's had group nine times this year. She's had. And, you know, and it's like, it's an airway thing. We need to open the airway. And because the airways wasn't large enough, and there's more collapsibility if we have that honking cough. You know, it's like, I was taking her to urgent care. They were giving her a steroid, and I was like, oh. Like, I know. I'm like, there's a place for Eastern and Western medicine in my life. However, I'm like, if I can somehow interrupt this pattern in her health and not have every single cold that she gets from somebody else trying to croup, like, how do we do that? Right? And so I started to take homeopathy classes earlier this year. And so now it was like, this inner turmoil of, like, okay, there's the people in the homeopathy world who, like, they don't use. You know, it's like, there's one way only. We only use homeopathy. We do not use traditional medicine. Right. And then there's people like me who are like, okay, I think everything has a time and a place, and I am here for both of them. I just feel like I need to decide what makes sense in this moment for my child. And so with her, like, I've. I've tried to treat the croup now, like, with just homeopathy, and it didn't always seem to, like, be working. It seemed to be getting a lot worse. And it's supposed to kind of uproot and make things worse before they get better, but it was like, we're not turning a corner here. So, you know, I would tend to fall back on the steroid because that's just what I knew, and I knew it worked for her. But then we put her into early expansion. And so far, like, fingers crossed, like, she, you know, there's this whole debate between using something like a light wire appliance, slower, it's more gentle on the body, versus something like a rapid paddle expander, which moves a lot faster and can be. Arguably, people will say it's much more disruptive to the body. You know, I looked at it, and I was like, this is airway. She's an airway kid. I'd rather move this a little faster and not have to put her on any more steroids or have to fall back on, like, rescue inhalers if we can avoid that and put her into, you know, let's get her into suppliance and see what happens. And so she's had a couple colds now in the past couple months that have not turned into crew. Just last night, I was laying in her bed because she started, like, with this cough, and I was like, oh, boy. We're like, two months into expansion, and you're gonna bust my theory here. And thankfully, it didn't. It wasn't to the point where, like, I normally would be like, okay, like, this is not safe for you to sleep anymore. Like, you can't even breathe. Because she would get into, like, not just the barking cough, but, like, unable to catch her breath. Like, you can tell, like, the airway is, like, really kicking, and, like, there's major inflammation and. Yeah. Anyhow, so all that to say, like, I, you know, I always tell people, like, I'm on my own journey. I'm figuring out, like, what works, and that looks different for everybody's family. But I, like, encourage people to, like, trust your gut, ask questions, like, if something is. Especially when things are chronic. Right. I'm like, when things are chronic, we should be like, if this didn't work last time, why are we doing this again this time?

Yes. Yeah. Right?

Do you see a little bit of that?

Oh, I mean, yeah. I mean, and it's really parents doing the best they can. And, you know, I would never tell someone, get rid of your pediatrician and stop going to the doctor forever. But doctors are going to school to become medicine experts so they learn about these drugs, and that's pretty much what they learn. So if you want to find out why something is happening to your kid, you're going to have to build a bigger team. You might need a holistic nutritionist, a health coach, a naturopath, or somebody else to complement that pediatrician. But the pediatrician is doing the best they can with that medicine knowledge that they have, but it's a band aid. And sometimes you need a band aid, but really, if you don't want it to keep happening time and time again. That's why I love what you're saying. You're learning homeopathy. You're learning all these other things so you can support the body. You're helping her airway. You know, you're trying all of these root cause approaches to see, you know, can this be the thing? And we're all like onions. We got to keep peeling back the layers because, you know, it could be airway, it could be homeopathy. And there might be something else, too. There might be two or three more pieces that need to be addressed for her before that really stops impacting her for good. But it's just not giving up hope. And, yeah, just trusting your intuition, like our intuition is so powerful, especially as a mom, you know, when you're going to the doctor and getting the same answer time and time again, you know, it's okay to do something different. It's okay to say, between my knowledge and my. Some of my other holistic practitioners I have on board, I might do something different. And, you know, I was at the pediatrician's office maybe two, three weeks ago with my son. The school said, just make sure he doesn't have pink eye, you know, and he had a little bit of goo in his eye. And my doctor said, he doesn't have pink eye, but it is a sinus infection that cannot resolve without an antibiotic. Don't even get started on the antibiotic rabbit hole right now. Again, time and place. Yes. But, you know, the first three to five years, it is so important to be focusing on gut health and ways to only support that system. And antibiotics wipe out the good and the bad. So if it was a dire situation, I'm definitely going to use antibiotics. But my son wasn't on a downward trajectory. I noticed that he actually had been getting better. Homeopathy, herbs. All of these other tools I have in my toolkit, I'm like, I'm going to utilize those first. My pediatrician knows I'm crunchy, so she's looking at me like, you need to do this, and just, like, smiling at her, like, I'm thinking about it, but probably going to call you in a week if this doesn't resolve, and then we'll talk about it again. And, you know, we didn't fill that script. And my son did get better, but we supported him in other ways. It's not like I just said, okay, Fend, for yourself, little guy. Hope you get better. I just, I know my son. I've seen him sick before. I've seen him get through things before, and I know how to support his body. And this doctor's only spent, you know, a very short amount of time with him. In five minutes, he was prescribed the antibiotic and we were sent on our way. So in my opinion, I had options. And like I said, never going to say that you can't use one. It doesn't make sense to use one because they can be life saving.

Yeah, yeah. No, and that's, that's basically where I'm at too, right? And where it's like one of my family members will be like, my throat is bothering me a little bit, like, what can you give me? Right? And so I'm like, okay. But you know what, it's so interesting because before I think we were also like in such a grind of just life that like, we would ignore it. Like those early symptoms of a cold or a sore throat or whatever. And by the time you start paying attention to it, it's because you truly feel like such crap, like you can't really function anymore. And now you're like, okay, let me go take the over the counter stuff from the store. Let me go. Like, that's just the cycle that we were stuck in for so long. And like, those things don't exist in my house anymore. Like, I used to have a medicine cabinet that was all of your traditional, like, what you find in cvs and now I go straight to like the homeopathic section. And I'm like, like, what do they have? You know, I also have an entire drawer of home. Another conversation in of itself. But, you know, it's like there are so many options. And when I started to learn about like the history of homeopathy and how it actually was the first medicine and like, how did you get so far away from that? Like, why are we not using nature to help ourselves when it's a proven thing that's existed much longer than, you know, what we know medicine to be today? So that's a, you know, another whole.

It's not as profitable as petroleum based drugs, Hallie.

Exactly. And if you've listened to past episodes, you hear me, like sometimes you know. Exactly. Money, politics, Big pharma. Yes. Who owns these companies?

Oh, yeah. Yes.

100. So you know the other thing too, that I know that you can talk about, like much better than I, but, like the foundations of like, health. Right. Like, what are the things that you know if like, let's say there's a parent who's listening and they're like, okay, well, like, what can I pay attention to? Like just on a regular basis, you know, to basically set us up for being healthy and, or when we do get sick, our body will bounce back further because we have like better foundations set. Like, what are those kind of things that you share with people? My fa.

It's one of my favorite topics because I think it feels more empowering than scary because a lot of, some of the things I talk about feel scary to people and understandably so. They've scared me before too. But foundations just feel like, okay, I can, I can look at that, I can delve into that. And some of the foundations are free. Some of the foundations are just really basic simple switches and how we're thinking and how we're, how we're living our lives. So, and I, and I apply foundations when I'm talking to my speech pathology, the parents of my clients, or if they're health coaching clients. And I just say, you know, let's start with talking about diet. Where are we at with that? Are we eating mostly a whole foods type diet, mostly chemical free, I. Optimally organic. If that's within budget, we start there. And you know, diet so nuanced, everyone's going to need something a little bit different. But can we just start there and then depending on their child's needs, you know, link them up maybe with a holistic nutritionist or someone else who can really dial in specifics. So there's diet peace. There is water. How clean is your water? You know, we're talking about these things that we're inundated with on a daily basis. Food, water, air. So water is notoriously one of the most toxin rich things coming into our bodies. And if you really spend time looking in what's particularly in your tap water, you might be alarmed. And I just tell people, you know, start with something like, ewg, tap water database.

It's free.

You type in your zip code. And if you have city water, you'll find out what contaminants are over the safe limit, what contaminants are just in the water. And sometimes people are just bewildered from that. They're like, oh, I recognize that. Chromium, hexavalent chromium. Isn't that Aaron Brockovich movie about that? And it's so bad. And I'm like, yes, it's in your water. You don't want that in your water. So you can look into filtration. That will get rid of that chromium. And, you know, other people want more information about the water that's in their house. You know, I say, go to mytap score.com, get your personal water. They do. Well, city water, whatever water you have coming through, make sure you are filtering out these neurotoxins. Because really, we've got fluoride, we've got drug residues, radioactive elements, parasites, all of these things in our tap water that can be contributing to the symptoms of why we're seeing these kids in the first place. So some people just find huge improvements by just making a switch as small as their water. So I love food, I love water. Air, air, environmental toxicity. That's another big one. How clean is the air you're breathing? A lot of people don't really think about that or just like, air is air. And that can look like, are you using toxic cleaners all day, every day? Especially in the pandemic, everybody went crazy cleaning, sterilizing everything. But what are those things? And if you, you know, I'll say ewg plenty of times. But you can go on and look at the scores of these products and, you know, are they in the red? Are you having all these products that are related to. That can be carcinogenic or can lead to reproductive issues or that can lead to respiratory issues? I mean, talking airway. I mean, what kind of things are our kids inundated with day in and day out that are making their tonsils look this way? They're just little things, little switches you can make. Maybe your basement's flooding all the time, and you're like, well, I've been hearing people say things like mold on Instagram. And I don't really know, but I just know where her. Our basement's always flooding. Well, you know, if that's a concern for you, link up with a building biologist, have somebody come out, make sure everything looks okay, do a little bit of testing, and give yourself some peace of mind. We're in our homes all the time. We're drinking water all the time. We're eating all the time. If we just look at some of these basics, and it can feel overwhelming because there's so many things that maybe you're not looking at at all right now. Where is one area you can just start? You're like, maybe I'm really curious about this water thing. I've been feeling kind of off digestively. I kind of feel like my water is not helping. Just pick one area that doesn't feel overwhelming to you and research it. And if you don't feel okay in it, find a specialist or somebody who knows a lot about water that can give you some more information. It's empowering. Once we start learning more and start researching though, I find people do better when, when I'm not spoon feeding them information, when I'm saying look for this, look for that, look for that. And then they go back and they start doing their own research. And then not only are they empowered, but they are, they're learning and then their passion grows and then it just kind of, it builds this momentum and then these parents just can't be stopped.

Yeah, no, I love that. And that's, it's so, you know, everything. I was like sitting here going, yeah, we did that, we did that, we did. But I didn't know to do all things like way back when, Right. It wasn't until I started following certain accounts and I was watching this one account and she would literally take like her air doctor with her when she would travel and like car most of the time and her thera size and portable, you know, and I'm like, I feel like I need these things in my life. And I started researching more and I ended up buying an air doctor for like all of our bedrooms. And now in our house that we're in now, we have. They actually are still in all of like our bedrooms. But I also, I'm like going to. We probably don't need them anymore. But I put like a whole house, house like, you know, system on that essentially does the job of the air doctor and a little more economical, but also less. I just feel like so bad like getting rid of those filters so frequently because they were just like we were going through fast.

I know.

Yeah. I was like, we need something like a little bit. Like they're great though. Like they're great. Especially if, like that's, you know, what you're able to do. Like I am big, big pro, your doctor. I love it. The other thing too was like, so we moved into a new house and the builder there was like this issue with water damage a couple weeks before we closed, which we found a week after close. And by then there was already mold and there was like this major restoration project on like half of our first floor. And we ended up moving in afterwards. Like we had to have like the air vents re cleaned after which we'd just done. We had to have like, you know, so they did all that air quality testing. But my daughter, my 7 year old has had this like low grade like cough for like weeks. And I'm going, like, her room's right above one of the rooms where they did restoration. Like, I think we need to have somebody come in and test for mold. Because I just was like, I mean, I'm allergic to mold, so I'm like, I don't know why I'm not coughing in there. So I'm hoping it's not that and it's something, you know, else, but, like, can never be too sure. So. Yeah. And then with the water. Like, with the water, we had. All we had had, like, a whole house water filter in our last home. But here we did that. But then also, like, at the sink, we ended up adding in, like, reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis with remineralization. Because that, like, I, like, went researching this stuff because I was like, you know, that's. And then, of course, like, we put in a pot filler at our. Over our, you know, the oven, the stove, and it's the whole house water filter. Not the one with, like, you know, ro and. Oh. I was like, okay, so we're never gonna actually use that. Fantastic.

It's just there for show because all.

Of our drinking water, boiled or not, comes from this one. This little faucet right here. It is truly amazing because I will tell you that, like, with all of that and everything, and this has been a journey. Like, I, like, you're telling people, like, one thing at a time because it is so overwhelming. Like, I have. When we moved into this house, I finally got rid of, like, all the remaining plastic, and. And people were like, where is this? Where is that? Like, oh, I have to replace it. Like, sorry, next week, moving with us. I'm gonna donate it. I'm gonna just, like, you know, someone else who wants to use it can use it. I almost feel bad donating it because I feel like nobody else needs it. People do. So I'm not going to throw it out, because that's also not good for the environment. I'm like, I know.

I have those same debates in my head, right?

It's like. And then just the products we use in our house on our bodies. Like, it's. I've been a constant transition, and I let us because, like, some family members were living with us during the pandemic. Like, I let some of the cleaning products remain because of COVID and whatever else. And when we moved here, I was like, yeah, none of that's coming with us. Like, we're only using my stuff that I bought. And I find that, like, we have our house cleaned once a week. And they sometimes use their stuff, which they are not supposed to. And I'll walk into my home office and I'm like. It's like, I feel like someone's choking me. Like, I'm like, I can't breathe. Like, that is. You just smell the toxic chemicals, which my brain was so used to before and didn't react to, like, you know, five, 10 years ago, but now I smell it and I'm like, holy cow. Like, just. It gives me a headache. I'm like, no, can't do that. Can't do that. So. But again, it has been one thing at a time because you could seriously, I feel like, go nuts, like, trying to try to change everything at once. So I love that you're kind of like, figure out what resonates with you. Start there. That's like, you got to go slow.

Or people are going to run. They're going to run. And I'm sure I've like, scared family and friends enough. They might laugh hearing this because I probably was so intense in the beginning, like food and air and the water. And, you know, my mom is using reverse osmosis forever, but not remineralizing it. And I'm like, you're drinking dead water. And I hear my mom telling people all the time now, and. And I'm sure I sound like, like a scary daughter.

I'm just like, no.

But that stuck with her. And I see her putting her little mineral drops in, you know, to her water now, and I'm just like, well, I love it.

And then, so being a speech pathologist and obviously working with all of these kids who, you know, we see kids who are either delayed in development, there may be some disorder development going on there may, you know, all kinds of things that we're seeing. How do you feel? And maybe this is like a very loaded question, but, like, how do you feel this is impacting them? Because you did say, like, you know, we'll see changes even. But is there something that you feel like in particular it does to the developing brain or, you know, like, any thoughts on. On that?

You know? Yeah, it's a big question because there's so much affecting our children's developing brains right now. And it's not just one source. Like, I. I love Patricia Lemmer's Total Load Theory. She wrote Outsmarting Autism. And, you know, it's kind of explaining what happens, like, when a bridge collapses. You know, is it because of the engineer? Is it the weight of the cars? Is it the weather machinery? What is it and her theory is saying that it's a cumulative effect of all of these things. There's not this one thing that we can place all the blame on that is the reason your child got their autism diagnosis. It's the reason that your kids coming in to see Hallie because they're mouth breathing. You know, you can't just blame the pacifier. You know, is the tongue a piece? Is their air quality a piece? I mean, there's so many pieces. So, you know, once we start learning about all these different things, slowly that can impact kids the better. In my health coaching practice, and I've become really obsessed with this year, is bioresonant scanning. So I love looking at these scans for kids because I'm seeing what toxins are flagging again and again. And I see kids that have either mold illness, or maybe they're on the spectrum, or maybe they have language delays, or maybe they have sensory processing disorder. But there's a lot of things that I notice impact their bodies or put stress on their bodies a lot. And some of the big ones being fluoride, heavy metals like aluminum, mercury, and ones we might not know of as much, like arsenic and cadmium and uranium. There's metals and there are radioactive elements. So many families might live in an area with a lot of radon and they have radon mitigation systems. But then it's still coming through the drinking water. So I'm seeing. I've looked at research before, but now as a health coach and someone who's doing this kind of testing and seeing with my own eyes, like, wow, I can't tell you how many flag for aluminum. I don't. I rarely see a kid not flag. And, you know, and then parents are going down the rabbit hole of like, what can I do? What can I change? And there's a lot of things that are impacting our systems. You know, we could be getting that from our drinking water, we can be getting that from our shots, we can be getting that from our cookware. You know, we can be getting these toxins and metals from so many different sources. So I find what's helpful is to link up with a practitioner who can help you figure out what's going on in your particular body or your child's particular body, because their total load is going to be different than the next kid's total load. And, you know, although one kid might, their total load might be so heavy or so high that they regress into autism. The next person might present a sensory processing or the next person Kid might present as full blown eczema or asthma, you know, and I'm hoping I'm answering your question. I know I'm just kind of.

No, no, this is great. And I think that I've heard of like, the whole, like, total load or toxic load, you know, like, theory. And it's definitely not my wheelhouse to, like, explain it, but, like, it makes sense. I mean, I feel like when you kind of pause and you think about it and you're like, okay, I. There's all these little things that obviously each little thing can have an impact. It just, it makes sense. Like, you can't just cut out one thing and expect you're going to be, like, healthy tomorrow or next week. It needs to be that. This holistic approach to, you know, figuring out why I feel this way or why a child presents a certain way. And I think the important thing too is like, I never look at it as a way to, like, cure a diagnosis. I always look at it as a way to help a child thrive and function at their best, whatever that looks like for that child. And it sounds like you're kind of, you know, speaking to that. You know, I don't want to put words in your mouth, but I feel like, you know, just being a holistic. I agree. Yeah. That's like, my goal is always, like, and I've always said this, I'm like, I don't care what a diagnosis is on paper. I don't care, like, what it says on paper. I want to meet the child. I want to get down with them on the floor. I want to play with them. I want to get into their world. I want to understand who they are. I want to know how they communicate. I want to know what makes them tick, like, what makes them like, like retreat. What makes them want to be around people. And then from there, like, we can also kind of get into their world and truly figure out, well, okay, if we change this one thing, you know, and present something like this, how do they respond to that? Is that helpful to them or is that not helpful to them? And that's where I feel like, even just as a speech pathologist, like, the work is such a mix of science and art and like, truly, like, being creative and like, what I call, like, in the flow. And that's why I love the profession so much, is because like, like connecting even in the myo space. Like, I am the kind of person where a adult in his 30s will have. Will just sit here bawling on zoom or in front of me in an eval because they're like, nobody's actually listened to me. Or if they, if I did tell them this, nobody's believed me. And I'm like, this is your life. This is your body. Nobody can tell you how you feel or what you're experiencing. Like, that's only for you to know and you to share. So, you know, it's. It's just, just. I think we've gotten so far away from like trusting the patient or the parent of the patient to like, oh, no, you know what these symptoms. Check these five boxes. So this is the medication you need, or this is the treatment you need, or this is the diagnosis you get. And like that. That just drives me up a wall.

I know, I know. And I feel like I was, you know, to be honest, I feel like I was that speech biologist when I first started, because I didn't know. I didn't know. And I just thought, you know, my grad school degree and my, my ego coming out saying, no, no, no, like poo, poo. That idea, like diet doesn't matter what you've noticed about your child and their regression doesn't matter. Like that doesn't match my textbooks. So, you know, it's really a humbling experience when you have to come around and say, hey, moms know best. And it's not maybe our job to know everything about toxins and food and diet and all these things, but how can we better support these families? How can we just increase our awareness on what does impact these children? So maybe we don't know everything about the best autism diet, but maybe we have someone on hand, a business card.

Or.

A way for someone to connect with a holistic nutritionist, a naturopath, health coach, somebody that we can give them just like we would give them an airway centric dentist, just like we would give them a holistic ENT or OT anyone else, you know, we, you know, and I keep all of that stuff in my office and ready to go at all times because this is a team approach. We all need help, and we can only wear so many hats at one time. But just increasing our awareness of things and how everything is connected. You know, I keep one of my favorite studies done in 2018 in my office anytime a kid with autism comes through, done by Dr. James Adams. And he had powerhouse team like Julie Matthews, the queen of autism diets. And they did this beautiful randomized control trial study, which gold standard study design. And they found these remarkable changes that happened for people with autism with some dietary supplements and Epsom Salt baths. Over one year's time, their IQs improved, their developmental ages improved, their language improved. So ding, ding, ding. Like, we need to be following that research too. Just, I mean, in the world of speech pathology, being up to date on what kind of things are helping these kids. And, you know, I keep that research study in my office and I hand it to parents first thing, and I'm just like, you know, browse through this, you know, and, you know, if you need any support, like, I always have my naturopath, my, you know, autism dietitian that I like to hand out with it. And, you know, I can't wear all those hats during my speech and language session, but sure, drop a few hints about things during the time when I can. But having those connections for people, I really. I think I would like the future of speech pathology for us to be at least aware of those things and know, like, you know, learning in grad school that food does matter and, you know, we don't have to know everything about it, but having that, that teammate to support the families is really. Is really where I think we can start to grow.

Yeah. And, you know, when you, when we talk about this is the thing that always pumps into my brain is these children who work with ABA therapists who reward them with. With M M's and other candy. And they're literally getting an M M like every like three trials. And I'm just thinking of.

We're trying.

You're trying to change their behavior. Like, let's pretend this is actual, like, ABA and the way that AB is supposed to happen, not like the kind that they say they are, but they don't. Which I know is a whole nother controversy in and of itself. Like, I've seen like, verbal behavior, ABA therapy work in a very different way than it typically presents, which I don't.

Not.

Not a big fan of. But anyways, we got a lot of hate mail for that, I'm sure. But, you know, it just comes back to this. You are trying to change behavior, which is controversial in and of itself, and then you're giving them toxins that are actually going to make it the behavior 10 times worse because they're going to feel horrible. You're now putting all these chemicals into their body, your sugar plus chemical. I mean, it's just like the list goes on. Right? And I'm just like, I just.

Just.

Where does. It just doesn't make sense to me.

It doesn't make any sense. No, that. And that's, you know, that's that's why we have these people on our team. And you know, I know I wear more hats than just as a speech pathologist, but I talk to parents when we talk about gluten casein free diet and I bring that up and you know, some parents read the research or some people will just say, I'm willing to give it a try because I'm desperate. And you know, a lot of my kids on the spectrum do go to ABA therapy. And I say no matter where they go or what they're doing, you know, this needs to be consistent throughout. So, you know, they might have to change up their incentive for something else. But yeah, when you start, I'm so open about food dyes and these M and M, they're all giving out M&Ms. And I'm like, you know, really, these are just petroleum based chemicals that are banned in most other countries that are literally known to create hyperactivity in children, which you probably have been given a diagnosis for as well. Am I right? And so we know that this is probably impacting their behavior negatively. We're trying to change behavior. I mean, it is crazy. But you start talking to parents, they have no idea that these dyes are banned in other countries. They have no idea that they're made by the same things that make asphalt and gasoline and tar. They don't know that. And you start sharing that stuff. And I've got parents now that are like, we haven't touched diet in this period of time or these families that are following these diets. And then they come to me, well, we went to a birthday party and like this kid is in, this session is all over the place and like severe regression.

You're like, what's going on?

Last week was so different. And then parents tell you, we went to the birthday party and you just see how sensitive some of our populations really are and how much those things can put them in a downward spiral. Especially when they've been. Parents have been changing up their diet, cleaning up toxins and things like that. You know, it can be a really, it can be hard on them. So I think just educating and no parent's going to be perfect. We all kind of need to have those lows, we need to have those trial and errors to say, hey, actually maybe that diet was doing something, you know, maybe it's really doing way more than I ever imagined. Until we kind of strayed from it from a bit. For a bit.

Yeah. No, this, this was actually so Lily, who's now 7, when she was 2 maybe, or maybe even younger than that. And I, I had cut out food dyes just because I was like, okay, I'm not reading about this stuff. I know this is not healthy. Like there's alternatives that we can, you know, give her. Like, I'm, I wasn't like anti sugar, anti candy. I was just like, like this is no longer aligned with me. Like, I don't want to give my kids stuff with food dyes. Like, I don't eat them. Why would I give them to her? So I, that's. We had exactly one of those situations where she had something with red food diet. And I joked at the time, it was kind of scary. I'm like, she became like the exorcist. Like the child could have been spinning around. She went from like 0 to 100 so fast. She was, you couldn't, I mean, what 2 year old can you reason with? But like, you couldn't talk to her. She was like screaming at the top of her lungs, hysterical. And we're like, what this often? Then I went, oh my gosh, she just had red food diet like two hours ago. Like, what's going on? And. And after that I was like, okay, people, did you see what just happened? Like, this is why, you can call me crazy, but like, this is why we don't give her food dyes. And so that was where I became. I like, like boots on the ground. I was like, I am not bud. Like now my kids go to birthday parties and like I'm like 80, 20, like, I'm like, I let them live. I let them eat stuff with friends. I let them, you know, we got to restaurants and everything is always organic. But I'm like, that's where when we're home, everything is, you know, for the majority of the time. Occasionally something will come in that may not be organic and like, fine, like I'm not insane over it, but I'm like, I see the difference, right? I see the difference. And it's, I'm sitting here thinking too, because like toxic load, right? So I was telling, talking about my youngest who is an expansion at age four and a half. And she's like, when you look at her next to my older daughter, she's like, she looks a little inflamed. She looks a little bit like, you know, sometimes she'll eat certain things. She'll become very gassy, like very quickly. She, especially dairy. Like she, you know, and it doesn't matter if it's like raw milk, whole milk, a 2 mil, it doesn't matter like what Kind of. It is like, it. Yes. Yeah. And then there's other things. I'm like, okay, now I think we need to do some testing because I don't know what the foods are anymore. You haven't had any dairy today. And obviously it's not completely out of her system, but I'm like, something just kicked this into gear. And she. I'm like, she probably doesn't feel good, but she doesn't know any difference, so she can't tell me that. And then also steroids. She's had a lifetime history of chronic group and steroid use. She's had antibiotics. She's had, like, all these different things from, like. Like, I probably need a detox. Like, probably be really helpful, along with, like, all the airway stuff that we've done. But yeah, no, it's. You know, and I just think, even for me, right. Someone who. I don't always realize how deep I am into this until I step back and go, oh, wow. Like, I am pretty deep into this.

Like, organic sheets and.

Green certified wood furniture. And, like, you know, like, I'm like. Because I. I read things now and I see and I'm like, in the opportunity where I. We're moving and I have the opportunity to switch something out or my child is upgrading from a crib to a bed. Like, in those opportunities, I'm like, okay, this is the time we're gonna slowly, you know, we're gonna go this direction. Organic mattress, like, all those things. Because again, you said, like, where are they spending a majority of their time? And if they're sleeping on a pillow or a mattress or a. Around furniture that's full of toxic chemicals, I'm like, what good is their doctor gonna do? You know, it's so. And obviously this all takes time and money and resources and, like, you know, and I always tell like, people. It's one thing that I've learned from, I think, hanging out with a lot of crunchy people, too, is that furniture that's older, that you know it. A lot of the toxins have, like, died off. And so you can get some of these older, like, wood furniture pieces or something that you don't have to worry about that, you know, as much like someone was like, just leave your furniture in your garage for three days if you're getting certified, blah, blah, whatever. And I was like, in South Florida, I'm actually a little worried about that. It's starting to, like, Cause, like, mold in the furniture. Yeah.

And anything humidity factor down there. That's for sure. Yeah.

But it's been such a journey, and it's literally been like, one piece at a time. But I think just. Just this. There is such a lack of education. There is. And, you know, and going back to, like, what you were saying when we left grad school, I remember myself, like, coming out of grad school and being like, but nobody showed me how to do articulation therapy. Like, if I could just see possessions. Like, why did anybody teach me that? Like, I didn't really work with a lot of artic kids. I worked with, like, these other types of, you know, in anyway, so it was, you know, and I look back at that and I laugh because I think that's just a product of. Of what I was taught and the environment I was in and what I thought I was missing. When really, I actually do think, like, I had some really great mentors and clinical director who really encouraged us to not pre plan everything. And like, they're like, one said, and she actually was someone who works with, you know, people with autism and has, like, a whole clinic surrounding it. She was like, the best therapist can do therapy out of their purse. And that has always stuck with me because I'm like, oh, you mean be creative. Like, we have to see, like, at right now and figure out how to take whatever this random thing is and engage them and get them, you know, get on their level so that we can kind of get in and then address, like, whatever it is we want to address. And like, that, you know, between her and one of my other mentors who basically had me make up all these questions before I went in for, like, my first teenage fluency evaluation. And I, like, fluency is not my thing. It was never my thing. So, like, I'm like, already like, oh, my gosh. Like, this kid's gonna hate me. Like, I'm gonna say the wrong thing, and he's just gonna shut down and, like, not want to talk, and it's gonna be a whole thing. Anyway, so I write. I'm like, all prepared. I'm ready to walk in. She's like, let me see your question. So I hand her my. My clipboard. And she's like, okay, go.

And I was like, what do you mean, go?

And she's like, oh, go ahead. And I was like, can I have my questions back? And she was like, boy is gonna do when you walk into a session and he's a person who stutters and you have an entire list of questions to read. Okay. God, like, I hear you loud and clear. But I would have liked A little bit more. Like, notice I'm not as tight right now as I was. Not a more type. I'm like, I joke. I'm like a recovering perfectionist and all this because it's healthier and I don't really subscribe to all that anymore. But oh, my gosh, like, it's just, you know, when I look back, I'm like, these are, those. Are those teaching moments that I feel so appreciate that I wish I had more of. And that I wish were almost explained to me in a way of like, if you can do therapy like this, and if you can start to, like, really look at the person sitting in front of you versus worrying about, like, the checklist or getting through the eval or what you're going to write on the treatment plan, like, you know, then I'm like, I feel like I would have come out of grad school like, you know, a little bit different than I did, because I did. I didn't appreciate those moments back then. I reflect now and I'm like, wow, like, those were like, my most favorite memories of grad. My grad program. And I, like, I wish. I just so wish I had more of that. Yeah. Like, that experience.

Yeah. Well, I think, yeah, I think that's really cool that you have those experiences. And I. I look back and, you know, there's parts that I can get frustrated about. But I try to look for those silver lining moments, too, because I think of all the trainings and all of the. All of the money and the energy and time I've spent now I feel like I've learned more in my years outside of being in grad school than I did. 100%. Yep. But, you know, but yeah, there are those moments and there are those. There were positive relationships formed and mentors and, you know, things I learned that I don't want to do and do want to do. And, and, you know, every. Every educational opportunity is a lesson. You can either, you know, look at it negatively or positively. And I know I've had other moments with SLPs, be like, frustrated, especially one interested in myo or interested in feeding.

And all that stuff.

Like, we did not do this and.

Hear me say all the time, I'm always like, nobody taught us this in grad school.

Yes. No, seriously, it's like a broken record.

But really.

It'S. It's so important. And, you know, I. And that kind of sparked my interest in the field again when I kind of felt, like, hopeless and, you know, I kind of had a phase where I was you know, trying to figure out if I was even going to stay with it, too. You know, when I was getting into health coaching, because I just was so passionate about root cause, and I was like, how can this field. Look at that. So, you know, I was happy when I left the schools, had my son. I was off for a little while, and then I came back into private practice, and I. I stepped into a private practice that was all, like, myo tethered oral tissues, things that I had, like, no, no education on. And I was like. But I dove headfirst, and I just flew into it and training after training and just couldn't stop learning that stuff. And I finally felt that connection, that root cause connection there. And I was like, okay, here I can have more time with the parents. And, you know, I could talk about those weird crunchy things when they're leaving and, you know, ask them the questions. And, you know, it was a better fit for me. You know, everyone's going to find that right fit.

But.

Definitely finding these other areas of speech pathology that I didn't learn much of in school has helped me reconnect to the field.

And.

Yeah, yeah, I definitely. I hear where you're coming from.

Yeah. No, and I think that the beauty of it is, like, you know, those of us who understand you can't work in silos. You can't assess best, treat, function. Like, we. Our body doesn't work in silos. So why is it that, you know, medicine attempts to assess and treat that way? Like, just last week, I have a friend who was having a medical thing going on, and they went to their doctor who referred them to another doctor, that doctor, basically, like, you know, the person went in and saw that doctor. The doctor was like, oh, no. Like, that thing couldn't cause this thing, right? And it's like, there's so much of that, like, assumption, like, right off the bat. And I mean, I'm not gonna lie, I went on Dr. Google and I started Googling things. I'm like, I feel like. Like, this is, like, these are symptoms of this maybe, but, like, let me just see what comes up. So I said, do you want me to share your symptoms with, like, my homie, my homeopathy group, and ask them what they would recommend? And she's like, please. So I did. And in the meantime, she has, like, a friend who's a doctor, too. And so she, like, reached out to her friend, like, very close friend. And, you know, I think that the doc, like, that doctor was like, well, you can't rule out what you asked, asked Dr. 2 about, like, you know, why did. Dr. 2 was like, why were they so quick to dismiss you? Like, literally just sent this person home and was like, you're fine. Okay. This person had some serious symptoms that could be like, very big deal kind of symptoms that, like, I was like, that's.

That.

That is actually worth reporting. Like, it just. It's so. And. And the person had been on an antibiotic not too long ago. And I'm like, maybe it's like, kind of related to that. And things are happening down the pike because of this, this and this and this other thing. And so they did more tests and of course they find out, like, oh, yes, look, you do have. You are presenting with some of these things. And I, you know, I know I'm not like, specifying, so I don't want the person. I don't want to talk about this person without asking their permission. But the bottom line is, like, they had to go to like, three, and now they're going to a fourth specialist for one single problem. Because the first one referred to the second one. The second one was dismissive, even though that was the appropriate provider who should have handled this. And the third one is like, okay, I'm your friends. I'm going to help you. And like, let's see, like, what, you know, what dots we can connect. And sure enough, it was like the thing that we pulled up on the Internet and which. The second doctor was like, no, no, no, it can't be that. That, you know, this could not have been caused by, like, this or taking an antibiotic or that. You know, it's so medicine, like, medicine driven. It's so, you know, that doesn't check the boxes in my textbook. So impossible. And sure enough, not impossible. It's exactly what happened. And it's just, you know, and I see so many of these situations because it's, you know, ego, ego over helping patients. And I feel like I've been saying that a lot in the past couple weeks, even about, unfortunately, providers in our space who have large followings on social media, who are arguably putting out information that's incorrect, even misinterpreting research at times saying, like, something's not true. And I'm like, you understand that was like the original person behind all this who has a textbook on it. But, okay, it's just, you know, especially, like, airway myo talk thought space. Like, you know, that kind of. And I'm like, it's so confusing for people, for therapists, for families, for patients. Who don't know where to go. And then all of a sudden, like a large account pops up in front of their face. And it's the complete opposite, but it's actually like misinformation and arguably harmful. I'm like, whatever happened to informed consent? Like, what happened to presenting all sides and not letting our ego from what we think we know, from what we learned, like, stand in the way of actually allowing patients to research and access all the information so they can make an informed decision for themselves. Whichever decision that may be. Right. It's like, I just, I don't know, like, how do we get away from that?

It's medical gaslighting and it's everywhere. And that's why, you know, I can't stress enough that building your team of people, because you need to have backup plans when you have a serious thing come up and then you're going to your doctor hoping they're going to solve your issues, and then, you know, they poo poo you.

Like.

The same thing happened when I first got sick. You know, I went to my primary care doctor. She thought it was weird for, like, asking root cause questions. She said, you just need acid blockers. That's going to fix your problems. Sure enough, I wasn't making enough stomach acid. So that was the worst thing that could have been done for me at that time. Made my symptoms worse when I came back. You just need to be on the longer, you know, no support, not listening to me. I'm getting worse. I'm leaving work, I can't do my job. And it's. But it's everywhere. And it's no matter what parents are coming in with. I think doctors don't believe as much in the team approaches that I'm preaching here because instead of saying, hey, you know, this is a little bit outside of my wheelhouse. Let's refer you out to this or this. You know, I feel like it's. That's where the gaslighting occurs. Like, they want to wear all the hats. And then we're told, you know, that can't be that. Antibiotics don't do that, steroids don't do that. Whatever you're on doesn't do that. But you're like, I'm seeing it do that. And so building that team of natural providers of other people that can listen to you and not when you're in crisis, you build this team preventatively. And it's great to vet these people out before a crisis happens because you want to trust somebody. When either your child is In a crisis or you're in a crisis, and, you know, a lot of them will do free talks with you. I've called naturopaths and so many holistic practitioners, especially when I got back into being a speech pathologist after taking my break, because I wanted to have a team of people to refer all of my families out to when needed, when they're having GI issues, when they're having asthma, when they're presenting with, you know, all of these things that I know are biomedical conditions. I'm like, like, we need to have some people on board here. And I think that is really just a good starting point because nobody should be gaslit. And it's just. It's happening across the board right now.

Yeah, I love that tip, though, to, like, go and get that team now, like, while you're feeling okay, not while you're, like, in a medical crisis, or maybe you're not feeling okay, but you're not in crisis mode either. And you're just kind of like, I want to figure out who would be, you know, my team of providers if I need them, because oftentimes you also can't get in right away to a lot of these providers if you are in crisis. And then it's like, like, you know, I feel like a lot of people who want to go that route sometimes just kind of fall back on what they knew before, because that's just possible at the moment. And. Yeah, and so it can be hard to find the people. But yes, the. The people who work together who are like, okay, before we do X, like, let's talk about Y. Let's see. Let's talk to this provider. Let's review some of the things over here. Maybe we want some tests, you know, whatever. Those are, like, some of the best things that I've done for myself. And I have that same experience with, like. So, like, birth control made me dizzy. And I went to six or seven different providers and nobody suggested it could be that. And finally, like, I was making me dizzy, but also, like, giving me a menstrual cycle like, around the clock for, like, 30 days, 45 days. Like, I was like, this is not normal. I was like a teenager. This was like end of high school. And I remember being on, like, I don't know if it was like, senior beach week or whatever it was. I was like, you know, I think I'm just going to stop taking it and see what happens. And I stopped taking it and the dizziness went away, which I had been just tested for vertigo. And I The bleeding went away. Everything stopped. And I was like. And I never took it again, ever. I was like. That's where I think my brain started to be like, huh. Okay. And then I had issues with acid, and they put me on, you know, the same types of meds and the acid. You know, the acid blockers. And my body was. I was like, I can't button my jeans. I'm so bloated right now. I don't feel good. This is not even helping. Like, what is going on? And I called them, and they were like, well, let's try a different one. And I was like, that's your. That's your solution? I'm telling you, there's something that my body's, like, actually, like, responding really poorly to. Like, I don't feel good. Like, I'm really bloated. I just. I. And I also was like, I can't work. Like, it was, like, not. It was not good. And. And so I was like, I can't go back that person. So I just. I stopped taking that. I mean, it's like that whole trickle of, like. I feel like this was spread out over a number of years. And then sinus infections. There was, like, one point where I would get a sinus infection without fail every spring and every fall. And I lived in a place that had, like, four seasons before. And they would put me on Z Pac, Z Pack, Augmentin, and I go back the next. And then Augmentin would, like, knock it out, and they go back on the phone. Z Pack. Z Pack, Augmentin. And the third time, they. They put me on a Z Pack, and it didn't work the first time. I was like, okay, so can you look at my chart? Because you're gonna see that we've done this now. This is not my first rodeo. This is the third season that you are putting me on two rounds of Z Pack followed by Augmentin. And they looked. They're like, oh, yeah, why don't we just put you right on Augmentin first? And at the time, I was just like, okay. So I took it, and it did knock out, like, whatever it was, but I wasn't in the know at that time to even know, like, how to, like, build up my. You know, my gut again. And so I've had, like, gut issues my entire life, and I never really got any more sinus infections after that. So I'm like, you know, did it seem to work? Sure, but at the expense of. What else? Like, systemically. Right. And so that's. You Know, that's my whole journey, right. I just had my septoplasm, my, you know, terminal reduction. I had adult expansion which I feel like I probably need to revisit following my septum actually, you know, being in the right place now and being able to properly nasal breathe. Yeah, I release as an adult, you know, all these different things. Like I've had all kinds of, you know, bodywork, osteopathy, pt, who's trained in pri, like all, you know, everything, everything in combination. And I'm like, I do feel really great right now for the first time I think in I don't know, ever. And yeah, I didn't know what I was missing. I'm like, I can actually sleep and I wake up feeling refreshed. I don't wake up feeling tired. And I also was never going into REM sleep. We realized based on my, my study I didn't have obstructive sleep apnea. I do ars and my body would go into. The second I go into rem, boom, I was up. So I never got that restorative sleep. Yeah. So I was like, so what's the point of sleeping?

Yeah.

And that's definitely. We haven't done a follow up yet sleep study. I'm going to because I want to see the changes.

But huh.

This is so fascinating. Just the cumulative effect of all these different things that I've done over the years. I feel like now things are starting to actually feel like, you know, I can thrive in a different way than I knew was possible before, like just six months ago.

So back the layers of the onion and you know, that's what I'm hearing is like you're not giving up. You know, healing is a roller coaster. It's up and down, up and down. So for sure, but you're, but you're, you keep continuing on. You know, you, you might be starting with expansion or release. You know, you keep going and you're getting in homeopathy and making your home low tox. You're doing all these things and it's showing a cumulative effect. You've really increased your resiliency. You've built up your foundations, you've lowered your total load. You know, all of those things make a huge difference. So when things come your way now, you're going to be able to handle them better than you probably would have in the past. And that's just kind of like the take home I want for people is we can increase our resiliency. We can, you know, nourish ourselves, build up these Foundations so we can take on, you know, these hits from toxins that we are inundated with all the time because we cannot avoid them. They're everywhere.

It's ubiquitous.

You can't step outside and avoid. Avoid everything. We can't live in a bubble, as appealing as it might seem in this day and age.

Yeah.

So we just have to build our resiliency and we have to start with where we're at. What can we do that's not going to wreck our mental health, our budget, and whatever else. Start small and then just keep going from there. And like, you're a great story, Hallie. Like, it just took a long time, but you just kept going at it and you're still like, you know, maybe I still have a little bit of more work to do and that's okay, you know, having this mindset that our health, you know, is everything. So we need to always invest in it. We always need to make that a priority more so than, like, the latest car or the latest phone or the latest furniture. You know, sometimes it's a little bit of a priority and a value shift. But when you lose your health, I mean, you can talk to anybody who's on here who's had a health crisis. None of that matters anymore. When you don't have your health, nothing else matters. So the more we focus on it now, preventatively, or maybe you already have a diagnosis and now you're feeling like it's never too late. There's only so much we can do to decrease that total load. There's always so much we can do to. To become more resilient. We just have to stay the course and find the right team. I love that.

I love how you make it feel, like, less overwhelming. Because I think for me, in the beginning I was like, oh, my gosh, there's so much I have to do. And then I just was like, okay, we're going to start with the food. Because that's something that I feel like I can feel right now. And I, you know, obviously goes in every day. So we're going to start there. And so that was. That was honestly, like, one of my initial starting points was just what I put in my mouth and then what I put on my body followed. And then, you know, it was the trickle from like that to like, okay, water, okay, air, okay. You know, and then this was all before I was ever in the Myotox airway space. Like, this was all before that. And so I'm very grateful that, like, I stumbled upon, like, you Know, understanding, like, how to take control of certain things, you know, regarding my health. But it can be so overwhelming. So I love how you make it, like, very. Just like, okay, like, we're going to figure out. And then, you know, going back to also individualizing it, like, what are you going to benefit most from? Maybe first and working with somebody like yourself sounds like you kind of help people figure that out and, like, almost create, like, a roadmap of, like, okay, here's step one. Like, deep breaths. Let's just focus here right now. We'll talk about the rest later, which I think is a beautiful way to approach a lot of things when it comes to life in general, but especially health, because it can all be so overwhelming. And that stress, the oxidative stress, and, like, the effect that that has on our system is just as bad as all the rest of it. Talk about cumulative effect. Right? So thank you. Then, like, amazing. Where can everybody find you if they want to possibly work with you or.

Just follow your account? Yeah, you know, find me. I'm most active on Instagram right now. Roots Health and wellness. Yeah, that's pretty much where I spend all my free time. So, yeah, come find me there. I'm always chatting with people, putting up question boxes, talking to people when, you know, they have questions or concerns, sending them to different providers all the time. You know, that stuff is my passion. So, you know, if you come to me and you're, you know, you have all these things I present outside my wheelhouse, I'm going to get you sent over to somebody that I know specializes in what you need help with. You know, we need to all be resources for each other and help direct each other to the best people. And I like being that guiding point for people at times.

I love helping people, too. I like working with them, too.

But, you know, like I said, you can only wear so many hats, and people come from literally all over the world and have different things going on. So I'll be the first person to tell you. It sounds like you need to get into mild first. You need to get in. Someone needs to look at your mouth, Someone needs to look at your airway, Someone needs to run some tests on you. There's so many things that really might need to be your first stepping stone. And. And I'd be happy to link you up with those people.

Awesome. Well, we'll make sure that's in the show notes, too. Jesse, thank you so much. This has been amazing. I know we could talk all day long because I'm like, I just love, I love these. And it's so fun to talk to another speech pathologist who's like, you know, you're actually like living and working in this space too on a daily basis. And it's, it's hard sometimes to find people like in that, in our space specifically too that are, you know, in the low tox living and healthy coaching type of lifestyle. So. So thank you. This has been amazing.

Yes, thank you so much for having me.

Thanks for listening to this podcast. If you want to hear more of these Myo Tots, Airway and Feeding related episodes, be sure to leave a review on Apple Podcasts or pledge a small amount on patreon.com forward/the untethered podcast. If you found value, others you need in this space will too. So be sure to share this episode on your social media platforms and join us over on Facebook on my Facebook page @HALLIEBLCAN BIZ, on Instagram at Alibulcan. And you can head over to theuntetheredpodcast.com to grab a copy of the Show Notes where you can also subscribe to be kept up to date on the latest podcast episodes.